KR102540088B1 - Bottle for supplying photoresist for semiconductor manufacturing - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention discloses a bottle for supplying photoresist for semiconductor manufacturing, comprising a bottle body in which photoresist is accommodated in an internal accommodating space, and a cap assembly fastened to an upper end of the bottle body and adjusting its height, the cap assembly comprising: A cap body screwed to the top of the main body, installed inside the cap body to communicate with the receiving space, and a cap height adjusting body that is height-adjusted along the screw thread of the cap body and installed through the cap height adjusting body It is height-adjusted together with the cap height adjusting body and includes a hose positioned in the accommodation space to discharge the photoresist.

Description

Bottle for supplying photoresist for semiconductor manufacturing}

The present invention relates to a photoresist supply bottle for semiconductor manufacture, and more particularly, to a photoresist supply bottle for semiconductor manufacture capable of discharging the entire amount of photoresist filled in the bottle.

In general, a large amount of photoresist is used in a semiconductor manufacturing process.

A typical example of a process in which a photoresist is used is a photolithography process. In this photolithography process, a photoresist is applied on the surface of a wafer using a spin coating device, then the applied photoresist is baked, and then irradiated with ultraviolet rays. This is a process of forming a photo mask for forming a necessary semiconductor circuit pattern.

The photoresist used at this time has a slightly different composition depending on the thickness and characteristics of the photomask to be formed. Therefore, since photoresists used in each unit process have different components and characteristics, they must be supplied by a separate supply system.

In a conventional photoresist supply bottle, photoresist is supplied through a hose from a bottle in which the photoresist is stored, the supplied photoresist is dropped on the upper surface of a rotating wafer, and a constant surface is formed on the upper surface of the wafer by the centrifugal force being rotated. To apply a photoresist of a thickness, the bottle for accommodating the photoresist in such a coating equipment is shown in Figure 1, a brief description of this is as follows.

1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the structure of a photoresist storage bottle of a conventional semiconductor wafer coating equipment. As shown, a photoresist 1 is accommodated and a container 2 of a certain size with an open top, and A stopper (3) installed in the upper opening of the container (2) and a hose (4) whose lower end is submerged in the photoresist (1) inserted into the stopper (3) and housed inside the container (2), and a stopper ( It is installed through 3) and consists of a nitrogen supply hose (5) for supplying and pressurizing nitrogen into the container (2).

However, when the photoresist 1 of the container 2 is used up, it is replaced with a new container 2, and the end of the hose 4 is bent or bent according to the repeated replacement of the container 2 There is a problem in that the entire amount of the photoresist 1 filled in the container 2 is not discharged, and bubbles are generated in the remaining photoresist 1, resulting in a decrease in the quality of the coating.

Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-2003-0025436 (published on March 29, 2003)

Embodiments of the present disclosure are to improve the above-mentioned problems and limitations of the conventional photoresist supply bottle, and the height of the hose inside the bottle body according to the height adjustment of the cap assembly can be adjusted to discharge the entire amount of photoresist. It is to provide a bottle for supplying photoresist for semiconductor manufacturing.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a photoresist supply bottle for semiconductor manufacturing that can use the entire amount of photoresist by installing a lifting plate and a lifting means capable of adjusting the receiving space according to the remaining amount of photoresist in the bottle body. It is for

The technical problems to be achieved in the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to the above-mentioned matters, and other technical problems that are not mentioned are not limited to those skilled in the art from various embodiments to be described below. can be considered by

A photoresist supply bottle for semiconductor manufacturing according to the spirit of the present invention includes a bottle body in which the photoresist is accommodated in an internal accommodating space, and a cap assembly fastened to an upper end of the bottle body and adjusted in height, the cap assembly comprising: A cap body screwed to the top of the bottle body, a cap height adjuster installed inside the cap body to communicate with the accommodation space, and a cap height adjuster whose height is adjusted along the screw thread of the cap body, and installed through the cap height adjuster It is height-adjusted together with the cap height adjusting body, and is positioned in the receiving space to include a hose for discharging the photoresist.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a stopper plate may be further installed between the cap body and the cap height adjuster to limit the descending degree of the cap height adjuster.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the bottle body may include a water level sensor that detects the residual amount of the photoresist in the accommodation space and outputs a detection signal.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, a bottle body in which a photoresist is accommodated in an internal accommodation space, and a cap assembly fastened to an upper end of the bottle body and adjusted in height, wherein the bottle body has a bottom surface of the accommodation space. The cap assembly includes a lift plate installed close to each other to adjust the height of the lift plate and a lift means for driving height adjustment of the lift plate, and the cap assembly communicates with the cap body screwed to the upper end of the bottle body and the accommodation space. A cap height adjusting body installed on the inside of the body and height-adjusted along the screw thread of the cap body and a cap height adjusting body installed through the cap height adjusting body are height-adjusted together with the cap height adjusting body, and are located in the receiving space to adjust the photo It includes a hose for discharging the resist.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the elevating means includes a plurality of guide protrusions protruding from the lower surface of the elevating plate, guide grooves installed on the bottom surface of the accommodation space to guide the elevating and descending of the guide protrusions, and the guide grooves. It includes an elastic member positioned inside and installed to support the guide protrusion, elongated according to the residual weight of the photoresist accommodated in the accommodating space, and elevating the lifting plate.

In the photoresist supply bottle for semiconductor manufacturing according to the present invention, the height of the hose is adjusted to suit the remaining amount of photoresist consumed in the bottle body through the height adjustment of the cap assembly, so that the entire amount of photoresist can be discharged.

In addition, by installing a lifting plate and lifting means for adjusting the accommodation space according to the remaining amount of photoresist in the bottle body, the bottom height of the bottle body, that is, the accommodation space is adjusted, so that the entire amount of the photoresist can be used.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional photoresist supply bottle,
2 is a perspective view of a bottle for supplying photoresist according to an embodiment of the present invention;
3 is an exploded perspective view of a photoresist supply bottle according to an embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of Figure 2,
5 is a cross-sectional view showing an operating relationship in which the height of the hose is adjusted in FIG. 4;
6 is a cross-sectional view of a photoresist supply bottle according to a first embodiment of the present invention;
7 is a cross-sectional view showing an operational relationship in which the inner space of the photoresist supply bottle in FIG. 6 is reduced;
8 is a cross-sectional view of a photoresist supply bottle according to a second embodiment of the present invention;
9 is a cross-sectional view showing an operational relationship in which the inner space of the photoresist supply bottle in FIG. 8 is reduced.

The embodiments described in this specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are only one preferred example of the disclosed invention, and there may be various modifications that can replace the embodiments and drawings in this specification at the time of filing of the present application.

The same reference numerals or numerals presented in each drawing in this specification indicate parts or components that perform substantially the same function. The shapes and sizes of elements in the drawings may be exaggerated for clarity.

Terms used in this specification are used to describe the embodiments, and are not intended to limit and/or limit the disclosed invention. Singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In this specification, terms such as “include” or “have” are intended to designate that there is a feature, number, step, operation, component, part, or combination thereof described in the specification, but one or more other features It does not preclude in advance the existence or addition of numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

Terms including ordinal numbers such as “first” and “second” used herein may be used to describe various components, but the components are not limited by the terms, and the terms are one It is used only for the purpose of distinguishing a component from other components. For example, a first element may be termed a second element, and similarly, a second element may be termed a first element, without departing from the scope of the present invention. The term “and/or” includes any combination of a plurality of related recited items or any one of a plurality of related recited items.

Terms such as "... unit", "... unit", and "module" described in the specification mean a unit that processes at least one function or operation, which is implemented by hardware or software or a combination of hardware and software. It can be. Also, “a or an”, “one”, “the” and like terms are used herein in the context of describing various embodiments (particularly in the context of the claims below). Unless otherwise indicated or clearly contradicted by context, both the singular and the plural can be used.

The terms "top", "bottom", "front", "rear", etc. used below are defined based on the drawings, and the shape and position of each component are not limited by these terms.

Hereinafter, embodiments according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Here, Figure 2 is a perspective view of a photoresist supply bottle according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 3 is an exploded perspective view of a photoresist supply bottle according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of FIG. , FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing an operating relationship in which the height of the hose in FIG. 4 is adjusted.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, in the photoresist supply bottle in the present invention, the bottle body 100 in which the photoresist 10 is accommodated and the bottle body 100 fastened to the upper end of the bottle body 100, the height It may be composed of an adjustable cap assembly 200 .

The bottle body 100 is a bottle of a certain size with an open top, and a receiving space 102 of a certain area is provided therein to accommodate the photoresist 10 .

In addition, the photoresist 10 is supplied to the inlet portion 110 of the open top, and a screw thread may be formed on the outer periphery.

In addition, the gripping part 120 protrudes from one side of the bottle body 100, and the gripping part 120 may be formed to be connected to the bottle body 100 from the outside of the inlet part 110.

The gripping part 120 may protrude in an arc shape.

And, the bottle body 100 may be made of polyethylene or a metal material of a crystalline thermoplastic material.

The cap assembly 200 that opens and closes the inlet 110 of the bottle body 100 includes the cap body 210, the cap height adjuster 220 and the photoresist 10 whose height is adjusted from the cap body 210. ) It may be composed of a hose 230 for discharging.

The cap body 210 has a ring shape having a certain thickness, and a through hole is formed in the center thereof, and a first screw thread 212 and a second screw thread 214 may be formed on the inner periphery of the through hole.

The first screw thread 212 is screwed into the inlet 110 so that the cap body 210 is fastened and fixed to the bottle body 100, and the cap height adjusting body 220 can be fastened to the second screw thread 214. there is.

In addition, the first thread 212 and the second thread 214 may have different thread directions. For example, if the first thread 212 is a left hand thread, the second thread 214 is a right hand thread with a clockwise thread. can

In addition, the cap height adjusting body 220 is installed on the inner periphery of the cap body 210 to have the same inner diameter as the inlet portion 110 and communicate with the accommodation space 102 .

On the outer periphery of the cap height adjusting body 220, a screw thread having a certain length is formed along the vertical direction and is fastened to the second screw thread 214 of the cap body 210, and at the same time, the second screw thread 214 is rotated according to ) can be adjusted in height.

Here, the height adjustment of the cap height adjusting body 220 means that it can be raised or lowered from the cap body 210 fixed to the bottle body 100.

Furthermore, the cap height adjusting body 220 may have a receiving groove 221 facing the accommodating space 102 in a certain size on the lower surface, and a circular cap head 222 integrally formed on the upper surface.

When viewed from a plan view, the cap head portion 222 may have one half formed as an inclined surface 222a and the other half formed as a horizontal surface 222b based on the center.

The hose 230 through which the photoresist of the bottle body 100 is discharged passes through the inclined surface 222a and passes through the receiving groove 221 and is positioned in the receiving space 102 .

The hose 230 is installed obliquely in a direction orthogonal to the inclination angle of the inclined surface 222a, and its end faces the bottom surface of the accommodation space 102, and toward the end of the hose 230 protruding into the inclined surface 222a, there is no The illustrated pump or the like is connected and installed to assist discharge of the photoresist 10 .

In addition, a nitrogen supply pipe 240 is installed through the horizontal surface 222b of the cap head 222 to face the accommodation space 102.

Nitrogen is supplied through the nitrogen supply pipe 240 to increase the pressure inside the receiving space 102 to help discharge the photoresist 10, and when the remaining amount is small, bubbles generated in the photoresist 10 and Together, the waste photoresist will be collected.

In the present invention, the height of the hose 230 is adjusted so that the entire amount of the photoresist 10 can be discharged, so the nitrogen supply pipe 240 may not be required in some cases.

Here, the height of the hose 230 and the nitrogen supply pipe 240 may be adjusted together according to the height adjustment of the cap height adjusting body 220 .

In addition, the height adjustment of the hose 230 refers to moving away from or approaching the bottom surface of the bottle body 100.

And, as shown in FIG. 5, a stopper plate 250 is inserted and installed between the inlet part 110 of the cap body 210 and the cap head part 222 of the cap height adjuster 220, so that the cap height adjuster 220 It is possible to limit the overall degree of descent of .

The stopper plate 250 can be divided into a horizontal plate 252 and a vertical plate 254, and the horizontal plate 252 has one side opened and inserted between the inlet part 110 and the cap head part 222 It may be positioned, and when the end of the hose 230 reaches the bottom surface of the accommodation space 102, further descent may be restricted.

The thickness of the horizontal plate 252 may be set according to the design of the overall size of the bottle body 100 and the size of the cap assembly 200 .

In addition, a fixing hole 254a may be formed in a certain size and installed to include the gripping part 120 in the integral vertical plate 254 extending at right angles from the horizontal plate 252 .

Meanwhile, in the present invention, the bottle body 100 may include a water level sensor (not shown) for detecting the remaining amount of the photoresist 10 in the accommodation space 102 and outputting a detection signal.

The water level sensor may be installed close to the bottom surface of the receiving space 102, detects the remaining amount of the photoresist 10 and outputs a detection signal so that it can be known through a warning light on the control panel. At this time, the cap assembly 200 ) and the height of the hose 230 is adjusted.

The operation of the photoresist supply bottle according to the present invention configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. 4 or FIG. 5 again.

The photoresist 10 is supplied to the inlet 110 of the bottle body 100, and when the receiving space 102 is filled with a certain amount of photoresist 10, the inlet 110 is closed with the cap assembly 200. will do

The first thread 212 of the cap assembly 200 is fastened to the inlet 110 .

At this time, as shown in FIG. 4, the end of the hose 230, which is installed through and fixed to the cap height adjusting body 220, is located at a certain distance from the bottom surface of the accommodation space 102, and the hose 230 Through this, the photoresist 10 of the receiving space 102 is discharged.

Subsequently, when the remaining amount of the photoresist 10 in the accommodation space 102 becomes low, the water level is detected by the water level sensor, and the cap body 210 is used to discharge the entire amount of the photoresist 10 in the accommodation space 102. ) When the cap height adjusting body 220 is turned in one direction, the cap height adjusting body 220 descends from the cap body 210.

As the cap height adjusting body 220 descends, the hose 230 is positioned close to the bottom surface of the accommodation space 102, and at this time, further descent may be restricted by the stopper plate 250.

Depending on the design, the extent to which the hose 230 is located close to the floor surface according to the height adjustment of the lowering of the cap height adjusting body 220 may be possible.

With the height adjustment of the cap height adjuster 220, the hose 230 descends to a position close to the bottom surface of the receiving space 102, thereby discharging the entire amount of the photoresist 10.

Meanwhile, as another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a photoresist supply bottle according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 7 shows an operating relationship in which the inner space of the photoresist supply bottle in FIG. 6 is reduced. A cross-sectional view is shown.

In the first embodiment and the second embodiment to be described below, the same numbers are assigned to the same components, and separate descriptions are omitted.

The bottle body 100 may include a lift plate 300 installed close to the bottom surface of the accommodation space 102 and adjusted in height, and a lift means 310 for driving the height adjustment of the lift plate.

The lifting plate 300 has a disk shape and has a certain thickness, and may be slightly smaller than the inner circumferential diameter of the bottle body 100 .

Accordingly, an O-ring 302 made of rubber or silicon is installed on the outer circumference of the lifting plate 300 so as to have the same inner circumferential diameter as the bottle body 100 to prevent leakage of the photoresist 10 .

The O-ring 302 has an inclined surface formed on the upper surface to block water leakage and at the same time to allow the photoresist 10 to gather in the center direction.

And, as the lifting means 310 for lifting and lowering the lifting plate 300, a plurality of guide protrusions 311 are installed concentrically on the lower surface of the lifting plate 300, and on the bottom surface of the receiving space 102 A guide groove 312 may be formed to guide the ascending and descending of the guide protrusion 311 .

The guide protrusion 311 can move up and down along the guide groove 312 while being prevented from being separated.

An elastic member 313 is installed inside the guide groove 312, one end of the elastic member 313 is located on the bottom of the guide groove 312, and the other end can support the guide protrusion 311.

The elastic member 313 may be a general spring, and the spring coefficient of the spring may be set according to design.

That is, the degree of elevation of the elevation plate 300 may be limited.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6, when the bottle body 100 is filled with a certain amount of photoresist 10, the elevating plate 300 compresses the elastic member 313 by a load so that the guide protrusion 311 forms a guide groove 312. ) is inserted into the

In FIG. 7, the load is reduced according to the discharge of the photoresist 10, and the elevating plate 300 is moved up and down while being extended according to the spring coefficient of the elastic member 313, and when the remaining amount of the photoresist 10 is significantly reduced , The lifting plate 300 of the elastic member 313 is moved up and down to a position close to the end side of the hose 230.

As the lift plate 300 moves up and down, the remaining photoresist 10 in the accommodation space 102 also moves up and down, and the entire amount can be discharged through the hose 230 .

And as another embodiment of the present invention, Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view of a photoresist supply bottle according to a second embodiment of the present invention, Figure 9 is a working relationship in which the inner space of the photoresist supply bottle is reduced in FIG. This is a cross section showing

According to the second embodiment, the bottle body 100 includes a lifting plate 300 installed on the bottom surface of the accommodation space 102 and adjusted in height, and a lifting means 310 for driving the height adjustment of the lifting plate. can do.

The lifting plate 300 has a disk shape and has a certain thickness, and may be slightly smaller than the inner circumferential diameter of the bottle body 100 .

An O-ring 302 made of rubber or silicon is installed on the outer periphery of the lift plate 300 to prevent leakage of the photoresist 10 .

The O-ring 302 has an inclined surface formed on the upper surface to block water leakage and at the same time, the photoresist 10 can be gathered in the center direction.

And, as the lifting means 310 of the second embodiment for lifting and lowering the lifting plate 300, a through groove 314 is formed on the bottom surface of the bottle body 100 and penetrates the bottom surface, and the lifting plate 300 An elevation shaft 315 connected to the lower center of the through hole 314 and leading to the outside is installed.

At the end of the lifting shaft 315, that is, at the end protruding to the outside of the bottle body 100, a rotating body 316 having a predetermined thickness is installed as a disk.

Here, a screw thread is formed on the inner periphery of the through-groove 314, and a corresponding screw thread is formed on the lifting shaft 315, so that the lifting shaft 315 moves along the through-groove 314 according to the rotational operation of the rotating body 316. It can be moved up and down.

In addition, the first elevation plate 300 is positioned in the through groove 314 to prevent descent, and a knurling may be formed on an outer periphery of the rotating body 316 .

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, the bottle body 100 is filled with the photoresist 10 and can be smoothly discharged through the hose 230 located in the receiving space 102.

In FIG. 9, when the remaining amount of the photoresist 10 is located under the end side of the hose 230 according to the discharge of the photoresist 10, the rotating body 316 is rotated in one direction, and the rotating body 316 is rotated. Accordingly, the elevation shaft 315 ascends in the vertical direction along the through groove 314 to elevate the elevation plate 300 .

When the end of the hose 230 is brought into contact with the elevation plate 300, the operation of the rotating body 316 is stopped.

Rotation of the rotating body 316 may be performed manually.

Furthermore, the above-described stopper plate 250 may be installed between the rotating body 316 and the lower surface of the bottle body 100 to limit the elevation of the rotating body 316 .

Also, in the first and second embodiments, the entire amount of the photoresist 10 may be discharged by adjusting the height of the hose 230 through the cap assembly 200 .

As described above, by adjusting the height of the cap assembly, the height of the hose is adjusted to suit the remaining amount of the photoresist consumed in the bottle body, so that the entire amount of the photoresist can be discharged.

In addition, by installing a lifting plate and lifting means for adjusting the accommodation space according to the remaining amount of photoresist in the bottle body, the height of the bottom of the bottle body, that is, the accommodation space is adjusted so that the entire amount of the photoresist can be used.

In the above, specific embodiments have been illustrated and described. However, it is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and those skilled in the art will be able to make various changes without departing from the gist of the technical idea of the invention described in the claims below. .

10: photoresist 100: bottle body
102: accommodation space 110: entrance
120: gripping part 200: cap assembly
210: cap body 212: first thread
214: second thread 220: cap height adjuster
221: receiving groove 222: cap head
222a: inclined surface 222b: horizontal surface
230: hose 240: nitrogen supply pipe
250: stopper plate 252: horizontal plate
254: vertical plate 254a: fixed hole
300: lifting plate 302: O-ring
310: lifting means 311: guide protrusion
312: guide groove 313: elastic member
314: through groove 315: lifting shaft
316: rotating body

Claims (5)

delete delete delete A bottle body in which a photoresist is accommodated in an internal accommodation space, and
It includes a cap assembly fastened to the top of the bottle body and adjustable in height,
In the bottle body, a lift plate installed close to the bottom surface of the accommodation space and adjusted in height;
It includes a lifting means for driving the height adjustment of the lifting plate,
The cap assembly,
A cap body screwed to an upper end of the bottle body;
A cap height adjusting body installed inside the cap body to communicate with the accommodation space and adjusted in height along the screw thread of the cap body; and
a hose installed through the cap height adjusting body, height-adjusted together with the cap height adjusting body, and positioned in the receiving space to discharge the photoresist;
including,
On the upper surface of the cap height adjusting body, a circular cap head formed with a larger diameter than the outer diameter of the cap height adjusting body is integrally provided,
A stopper plate is further installed between the cap body and the cap height adjusting body to limit the degree of descent of the cap height adjusting body,
The stopper plate,
A horizontal plate having one side opened and disposed between the upper surface of the cap height adjusting body and the cap head;
A vertical plate extending downward at a right angle from one side of the horizontal plate and through which a fixing hole is formed.
including,
An arc-shaped gripper protrudes from a portion of the outer surface of the bottle body,
The stopper plate is installed so that the gripping portion is accommodated in the fixing hole,
The bottle body includes a water level sensor for detecting a remaining amount of the photoresist in the accommodation space and outputting a detection signal;
The lifting means,
A plurality of guide protrusions protruding along concentric circles from the lower surface of the elevation plate;
A guide groove installed on the bottom surface of the accommodation space to guide the elevating and descending of the guide protrusion, and
An elastic member located inside the guide groove and installed to elastically support the guide protrusion upward.
including,
The lifting plate is formed in a disk shape,
An O-ring made of rubber material or silicon material is installed between the outer circumferential edge of the lifting plate and the inner circumferential surface of the bottle body,
An upper surface of the O-ring is inclined so that the photoresist gathers toward the center of the bottle body,
One end of the elastic member is located on the bottom surface of the guide groove, and the other end of the elastic member elastically supports the guide protrusion upward,
The elastic member is compressed or stretched according to the residual weight of the photoresist accommodated in the accommodation space to lift the lift plate, a photoresist supply bottle for semiconductor manufacturing.
delete

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